Financial crisis forces Lawrence County hospital to delay paychecks

Biweekly paychecks due Dec. 21 haven’t been distributed, and employees of Ellwood City Hospital say previous paychecks have bounced.

Grant White, CEO of the hospital’s parent company, blamed the delayed paychecks on a “significant backlog” in collections. He predicted the hospital’s finances would improve this month, pledging in a Dec. 28 email to employees that “everyone will get paid for their work.”

Americore Health, a for-profit company based in Florida that has been buying financially-distressed community hospitals, purchased the Lawrence County facility in October 2017.